1. Area of Application
The present disclosure relates to motor vehicle protection means, and more specifically, to a floor mat that can be also used as a ballistic shield device.
2. State of the Art
An armoring assembly known from U.S. Pat. No. 5,533,781 issued on 9 Jul. 1996 to Charles A. Williams, features fibrous material, which is bonded to the upper surface of the floor, and a ballistic panel/blast shield disposed below the floor and spaced from the lower surface of the floor to create an air gap between the panel and floor. Mechanical fasteners secure the panel to the vehicle. Resilient material is disposed between the vehicle and the panel at the fasteners. The panel, air gap, resilient material and flooring provide resistance to blast pressure. The flooring and fibrous material trap flying shrapnel fragments.
Disclosed in UK application 2347112A “Anti-ballistic panel” published on 30 Aug. 2000 and authored by Derrick George Painter is an anti-ballistic panel comprising a laminated structure with a core layer formed from a foamed plastics material, an anti-ballistic textile sheet intimately bonded in face to face contact with the outer strike face of the core layer, and a deformable shield layer intimately bonded in face to face contact with the inner face of the core layer, the shield layer being adapted to prevent a projectile passing therethrough by deforming/stretching to absorb the impact of the projectile. The textile sheet material may be formed from Kevlar fibers. The shield layer may be formed from aluminum alloy. The anti-ballistic panel may be used in the construction of vehicle bodies.
Known from the UK patent application 2364956A published on 13 Feb. 2002 (inventor David Adie) is a ballistic protection shield made up of a first-section ceramic material, which breaks up an oncoming projectile and a second-section polymer fiber material, which arrests fragments of the projectile and the ceramic produced on impact. The first section ceramic material has a surface coating of adhesive and a layer of a high performance polymer fiber, which has tough, elastic properties and which upon projectile impact prevents the ceramic from cracking extensively. The second section polymer fiber material comprises a compacted form of multiple sheet layers. Holes or cavities are introduced to the first section ceramic layer or sub-layers as required to allow an increase in the depth of ceramic material for performance purposes without significantly increasing the product weight. A thin intermediate layer of Kevlar stiffened by epoxy resin may be bonded between the first and second sections for higher levels of protection. Applications include vehicle bodywork and bulletproof vests.
Known from U.S. Pat. No. 7,040,938 issued on 9 May 2006 to Youn Sang Choi is an armored foldaway inflatable floating device (AFIFD) mounted on the front surface and both side surfaces of an amphibious vehicle to provide additional buoyancy. The AFIFD allows safe swimming of the amphibious vehicle, provides rapidity through automated folding and unfolding processes. The AFIFD has a membrane structure having a seal function and a plate structure having protection power, which are organically combined with each other, to provide both a seal function and protection power. The AFIFD is provided with air while being unfolded by the operation of driving means when the amphibious vehicle swims in water, so that the membrane structure and the plate structure are unfolded to form a completely sealed floating space. When the amphibious vehicle does not swim in water, the structures are folded and closed fixed to a vehicle body, so that the amphibious vehicle can run on ground without any difficulty.
A need exists for a simple-in-structure and easy in use and convenient vehicle protection means that can be used as an armor mat, as well as a ballistic shield.